Secretary General and Qatari Prime Minister discuss Partnership

The NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen welcomed the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim Al-Thani at NATO Headquarters on 1 March 2012 and thanked him for the key role played by Qatar in NATO’s mission to protect the Libyan people in 2011. The Secretary General also thanked Qatar for the good practical cooperation with the Alliance and praised the active political dialogue between NATO and Qatar.

“Qatar is an important country and an important partner for NATO, ever since you joined our Istanbul Cooperation Initiative”, the Secretary General said. “And we look forward to an even stronger partnership in the future”.

Looking at the Chicago Summit planned for May of this year, the Secretary General said that Allies are keen to hear the views of partners in the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative on how to enhance the partnership with NATO.

“In this time of great changes, it’s important to know you can count on your friends and partners”, the Secretary General said. “And we are determined to strengthen our partnership further. Because NATO has a vital interest in stability and regional security in the Middle East, North Africa and the Gulf region”.

The Secretary General highlighted that the Alliance will work to make partnerships even more effective and even more productive and that Allies will pursue discussions with partners on how best to do it.